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Monday, November 03, 2008 10:39 AM Voter turnout already at 47 percent By Matt Shaw Daily Times Staff Writer Robert Rawls wore his "Jack Bauer for President" T-shirt to the Wilson County Board of Elections Saturday afternoon. And just like the fictional star of FOX's "24," Rawls completed his task as time ran out, becoming the last man to vote early in Wilson County. "I drove by three times and saw lines every time. I kept thinking that maybe it'd ease up a bit," Rawls said with a smile. "But the thing is I made it here in time." More than 1,000 people voted Saturday, the last day of early voting. The line was cutoff at 1 p.m. and it took about an hour for everyone to finish. People still came for nearly an hour after the polls closed, hoping to squeeze in, but to no avail. Luckily, they won't have long to wait to cast their ballot. Polls will be open from 6:30 a.m.-7:30 p.m. Tuesday across Wilson County and statewide. After Saturday's numbers were tallied, the preliminary count was 24,661 early ballots cast in Wilson County this year, roughly two and a half times the early turnout during the 2004 election. But those numbers will go up as more mail-in ballots arrive. Wilson County has nearly 53,000 registered voters, so even before we get to election day Wilson County already has a nearly 47 percent voter turnout. Election Director Ann Cone said she is pleased with the way her staff and pollworkers handled the tidal wave of voters. "It went a lot better than I ever expected it to," she said Saturday afternoon. Generally lines moved quickly and there weren't any reports of problems either inside or outside the two polling places. The Miller Road building, a new voting location, started off slowly but ended up seeing nearly 5,000 voters, she said. Most voters expressed gratitude, not frustration, Saturday. "I waited until the last minute, but this was really the first time I've had a chance," said Gail Zeigler, who was in line about 30 minutes. "The line is moving good," said Wayne Kelly as he neared the door. "When I got here, it went around the building but it's only taken 20 minutes to get this far." Jim Glover said he was "hoping there'd be a line." Glover, who lives near Buckhorn Reservoir, said he "just decided to come to town and see what kind of participation that we're having in this." He said he would like to see the county open even more early voting locations and keep them open more hours. "For every four extra locations, I bet we'd raise turnout 10-15 percent," he said. Dwight Dublin, near the end of the line, called early voting "a great idea." An electrician by trade, he often travels for jobs and will be in Maryland Tuesday. Rawls also praised early voting, although he conceded that he could have made it to the polls earlier. "Let's be honest -- everyone here has had a chance to vote earlier," he said. mshaw@wilsontimes.com | 265-7878 |
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